tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post4161959769827112868..comments2024-03-18T09:09:59.625-04:00Comments on Janet Reid, Literary Agent: Why every writer should read poetryJanet Reidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00615380335938685231noreply@blogger.comBlogger44125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-19455887810921648512018-04-27T09:30:49.859-04:002018-04-27T09:30:49.859-04:00Busy day yesterday, coming late, but thank you, Ja...Busy day yesterday, coming late, but thank you, Janet, for sharing such a beautiful poem. I fell in love with poetry when I first read Wordsworth's, Intimations of Immortality back in the Dark Ages when I was a freshman in high school. Then a few years later, I discovered Rod McKuen and someone else, I can't remember his name, but their collection of poems were bestsellers during that time.<br /><br />I don't write much free verse when I write poetry. It's the only time my mind is somewhat disciplined, so I write mostly couplets, patoums, or quatrains.<br />LynnRodzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10796099106913990163noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-85829059846247690752018-04-26T23:22:18.956-04:002018-04-26T23:22:18.956-04:00Oh, Brenda Buchanan, that’s extraordinary. Thank y...Oh, Brenda Buchanan, that’s extraordinary. Thank you. I need to read more Mary Oliver. I tend toward Edna St Vincent Millay myself—I post a monthly poem on my writing blog (sanitybakery.com), though moving means I’m a couple of months behind. I think this has to be April’s, though. It’s perfect.<br /><br />This is Brigid, though I can’t figure out how to log in on my husband’s phone!Ahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04583078121223433647noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-35746816643837276462018-04-26T23:12:36.327-04:002018-04-26T23:12:36.327-04:00I care not for verse
I think it a curse
And I loat...I care not for verse<br />I think it a curse<br />And I loathe every bothersome ballad.<br /><br />Thus, I cannot agree<br />To adore poetry<br />So I think of it much like a salad.*<br /><br /><br />*There are exceptions to this mild complaint<br />Here's a loud shoutout to BLOOD, WATER, PAINT<br /><br />Megan Vhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00752842865397799428noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-72679921302892131222018-04-26T22:45:54.481-04:002018-04-26T22:45:54.481-04:00That was beautiful.
I like when poetry touches th...That was beautiful.<br /><br />I like when poetry touches that part of your soul that you usually keep hidden, and away.<br /><br />I also like writing poetry, when my soul wants to release words that need to be free.<br /><br />Thank you for sharing that, JR!Janice Grinyerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14363741660626407979noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-88746576358816066472018-04-26T19:26:59.454-04:002018-04-26T19:26:59.454-04:00Michael - ‘the muse...has pulled up a chair’.
I...Michael - ‘the muse...has pulled up a chair’. <br /><br />I love that. The smell of coffee, the warmth of community, and the sound of gentle chit chat never fails to inspire me... as well as escaping the muse-mauling sight of grubby clothes, dirty dishes, and bountiful dust bunnies!MA Hudsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11055543285024785889noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-7504892224232352322018-04-26T19:17:51.145-04:002018-04-26T19:17:51.145-04:00Hi Timothy!
It's actually "old" new...Hi <b>Timothy!</b><br /><br />It's actually "old" news, the restored version came out a few years ago - but I only just heard of it in the past couple of days.<br /><br />You can read about it here:<br /><br /><a href="https://www.hsu.edu/academicforum/2008-2009/2008-9AFRestoringSylvia.pdf" rel="nofollow">Ariel Restored</a><br /><br />I hope it helps!Donnaevehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09026536210749494257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-39297786864395152902018-04-26T17:29:27.968-04:002018-04-26T17:29:27.968-04:00"On Writing In Coffeeshops"
(A response..."On Writing In Coffeeshops"<br /><br />(A response to "On Not Writing In Cafes" by Adrienne Su)<br /><br /><br />Blatant exhibitionism:<br />public display of erudition,<br />or "PDE." Bringing your art<br />out, where characters and plot lines hide.<br /><br />It's exhilarating. Choosing<br />from the menu board of sensations:<br />The java smells, the conversation hum,<br />the visage kaleidoscope.<br /><br />You put down the pen and dream into<br />a stranger's words, tics, gestures, or silence.<br />And then it happens. The muse--elusive,<br />flirty, coy--has pulled up a chair.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Michael Seesehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03694187657718931214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-87225460542100743662018-04-26T15:58:27.930-04:002018-04-26T15:58:27.930-04:00This is why I'm a fan of books in verse. Ellen...This is why I'm a fan of books in verse. Ellen Hopkins and Kristin Elizabeth Clark are some great authors to check out.Karen McCoyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02640324898284007337noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-43920969598493512382018-04-26T15:00:23.293-04:002018-04-26T15:00:23.293-04:00...But only God can make a tree!
(with apologies......But only God can make a tree! <br /><br />(with apologies to Joyce Kilmer for the final exclamation point)Claire Bobrowhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15666082441972111293noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-89774214895919618492018-04-26T14:50:39.093-04:002018-04-26T14:50:39.093-04:00Claire,
Good article. I also want my kids to be i...Claire,<br /><br />Good article. I also want my kids to be into poetry. I wonder if I could adopt the same approach I did with making them like vegetables. Didn't force it on them but we set by example. Then we waited. Around early adolescence was when they came around. Poetry might take much much longer.<br /><br />This is my third and last comment. Let's go for the big finish, Claire!<br /><br />Poems are made by fools like me...Cecilia Ortiz Lunahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00336485056322219624noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-53801466511541460142018-04-26T13:55:11.019-04:002018-04-26T13:55:11.019-04:00...Against the earth's sweet flowing breast. ......Against the earth's sweet flowing breast. <br /><br />You just did that to make me write "breast," didn't you Cecilia? :-)<br /><br />ps - good article on Lithub today: "When, Exactly, Do Children Start Thinking They Hate Poetry?" <a href="https://lithub.com/when-exactly-do-children-start-thinking-they-hate-poetry/" rel="nofollow">Lithub,</a><br /><br />Claire Bobrowhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15666082441972111293noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-87057061669976010182018-04-26T13:49:46.279-04:002018-04-26T13:49:46.279-04:00I'd go as far to say EVERYONE should read poet...I'd go as far to say EVERYONE should read poetry! I don't read or write it often enough, but I should because it's a great way to shake my writing world up at times. When I taught high school, I fought really hard to keep poetry units in the classes I taught and did all kinds of fun assignments that students loved. Language can be so fun to play with, and poetry can help remind us of that. Words, words, words... such power they can convey!JeriWBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04560326888524377308noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-38075829940040916932018-04-26T11:53:12.614-04:002018-04-26T11:53:12.614-04:00There once was an agent named shark
Who rode home ...There once was an agent named shark<br />Who rode home from work in the dark<br />She sat all alone<br />On her subway throne<br />Cause the passengers thought she was stark<br /><br />Brendahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08941043145591116608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-4039867688022631972018-04-26T11:39:30.353-04:002018-04-26T11:39:30.353-04:00Roses are red
Violets are blue
Great post today
A ...Roses are red<br />Violets are blue<br />Great post today<br />A hearty Thank You.<br />Steve Stubbshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13421775912951050610noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-34536174514468066582018-04-26T11:34:50.133-04:002018-04-26T11:34:50.133-04:00Claire
"The Wonder Woman poem lassoed me ri...Claire <br /><br />"The Wonder Woman poem lassoed me right in". Lol good one.<br /><br />A tree whose hungry mouth is prest...Cecilia Ortiz Lunahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00336485056322219624noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-45843057449808316432018-04-26T11:25:22.878-04:002018-04-26T11:25:22.878-04:00I love the Wonder Woman poem about orange. Thanks ...I love the Wonder Woman poem about orange. Thanks for the nudge. I confess I never seek out poetry, probably because most of the ones I stumble across seem angsty and self-indulgent. And yet I can still recite most of "I'll tell you how the sun rose" which I learned, hmm, forty-three years ago. And “The best laid schemes o' mice an' men / Gang aft a-gley.” And then there's Green Eggs and Ham. That counts, yes? <br /><br />Beth Carpenterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02447148196867821907noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-14224335335681173922018-04-26T11:17:54.155-04:002018-04-26T11:17:54.155-04:00...a poem lovely as a tree. (I had to complete tha......a poem lovely as a tree. (I had to complete that one, Cecilia. Great choice!)<br /><br />The Wonder Woman poem lassoed me right in, Ka-Pow! What beautiful language - it makes me shiver with happiness.<br /><br />Mrs. Karen McGahey, best 4th grade teacher ever, instilled a love of poetry in me. But like Janet, some poetry makes me feel, shall we say, "under-qualified" to understand it. In recent months I've discovered the poems of Janet Wong, now a favorite. Her book "A Suitcase Full of Seaweed" is astonishing.<br /><br />Colin: :-)<br /><br /><br /><br />Claire Bobrowhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15666082441972111293noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-55427212838435579132018-04-26T11:07:25.543-04:002018-04-26T11:07:25.543-04:00Thanks so much for posting this...It's Nationa...Thanks so much for posting this...It's National Poetry Month, and I've been writing and blogging about poetry all month! As a poet, the literary landscape is a challenge to navigate...and for some reason, it's super tough for poets to get agents...wait, is it money?! I kid. I kid. My point is that I'm grateful you've posted about the power of poetry. We take our jobs very seriously, us poets! Holding up mirrors to the world/humanity and writing about it in ways that directly connect to hearts and souls. So, thanks! Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-20487593274574977822018-04-26T10:55:10.612-04:002018-04-26T10:55:10.612-04:00I am in Cecelia's boat. The newer poetry is to...I am in Cecelia's boat. The newer poetry is tough for me to understand. I am from a simpler school. If I could write poetry I might be able to understand it better, but I am hopeless when it comes to rhyme and scansion.<br /><br /><b>Timothy</b>: The compilation "Ariel" came out two years after Plath's death. It was edited by Ted Hughes and twelve of the original poems were removed. Those works have been restored.<br /><br />I am sure you already know that Hughes was not exactly a standup character.Craig Fhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07157301156577795781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-88877697398116253812018-04-26T10:43:46.084-04:002018-04-26T10:43:46.084-04:00Thank you for that lovely poem, Janet. I could not...Thank you for that lovely poem, Janet. I could not agree more about the many benefits of reading poetry. <br /><br />I offer in exchange one of my favorite Mary Oliver poems, which resonates especially this late and welcome spring in Maine:<br /><br /><br />In the north country now it is spring and there <br />Is a certain celebration. The thrush <br />Has come home. He is shy and likes the <br />Evening best, also the hour just before <br />Morning; in that blue and gritty light he <br />Climbs to his branch, or smoothly <br />Sails there. It is okay to know only <br />One song if it is this one. Hear it <br />Rise and fall; the very elements of you should <br />Shiver nicely. What would spring be <br />Without it? Mostly frogs. But don’t worry, he<br /><br />Arrives, year after year, humble and obedient <br />And gorgeous. You listen and you know <br />You could live a better life than you do, be <br />Softer, kinder. And maybe this year you will <br />Be able to do it. Hear how his voice <br />Rises and falls. There is no way to be <br />Sufficiently grateful for the gifts we are <br />Given, no way to speak the Lord’s name <br />Often enough, though we do try, and<br /><br />Especially now, as that dappled breast <br />Breathes in the pines and heaven’s <br />Windows in the north country, <br />Now spring has come, <br />Are opened wide.<br />Brenda Buchananhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14161539130987122737noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-64231288466313338142018-04-26T10:40:15.426-04:002018-04-26T10:40:15.426-04:00Many, many years ago, when I was a seven year old ...Many, many years ago, when I was a seven year old girl in my rural town in my third world country, the poem "Trees" by Joyce Kilmer started me on a promiscuous relationship with the English language. The rhythm,the rhyming words.<br /><br />Poems still intimidate me. I tend towards the more accessible ones like Emily Dickinson's. This Wonder Woman poem is gorgeous, had me reminiscing about my first time...<br /><br />I think that I shall never see...Cecilia Ortiz Lunahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00336485056322219624noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-34597351570492149462018-04-26T10:37:10.743-04:002018-04-26T10:37:10.743-04:00There are poets that I try to re-read, but there a...<br />There are poets that I try to re-read, but there are also musical poets like Paul Weller of The Jam, "That's entertainment," an all time favorite urban decay poem. The music that accompanies it is also sublime. (Some of Costello's work as well.) I've always lived for lyrics, and blame that for my love of writing.<br /> french sojournhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14262858704848580714noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-49993368791817857372018-04-26T10:19:21.577-04:002018-04-26T10:19:21.577-04:00Thanks for this post, I am not a poetry reader but...Thanks for this post, I am not a poetry reader but you've convinced me I need to start. I love the Wonder Woman poem, the contrast of a super hero doing normal everyday grocery shopping is great!John Levinshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07095619905227354021noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-8433955784657307962018-04-26T10:10:51.155-04:002018-04-26T10:10:51.155-04:00Donna - Info please on "Ariel"! I teach ...Donna - Info please on "Ariel"! I teach Plath as our major IB poet!Timothy Lowehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07514224628760035696noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-421084870190118672018-04-26T10:10:02.906-04:002018-04-26T10:10:02.906-04:00James - love that Twilight Zone Episode. I also lo...James - love that Twilight Zone Episode. I also love "Time Enough at Last" - reminds me of the TBR pile of a lot of us reef dwellers.<br /><br />Timothy Lowehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07514224628760035696noreply@blogger.com